Field Hockey

PROVIDENCE, RI - Trailing 3-0 at halftime, the Brown field hockey team (0-3) rallied midway through the second half, scoring two goals in a span of four minutes, but it wasn't enough as Sacred Heart (2-5) added an insurance goal with less than three minutes remaining to hold on for a 4-2 win on Wednesday afternoon at Warner Roof.

The Bears were slow out of the gate this afternoon, as Sacred Heart carried momentum during the first 35 minutes of play and relied on the strong play of goalie Kristen McIntire, who turned away all three shots she saw in the first half and finished the game with 12 saves.

At the other end of the field, the Pioneers capitalized on the chances they had, scoring on their first possession and first shot of the game at 4:36. Just 10 minutes later, at 14:07, Sacred Heart added another goal when Jenn Howley knocked in the rebound of a shot by Amy Hendricks on a Pioneers' penalty corner. Brown junior Victoria Sacco (Madison, NJ) had a great defensive save on Hendricks' shot, but the ball bounced straight out to Howley's stick and she fired it into the net for the 2-0 lead.

The Bears picked up the pace of play for the final 20 minutes of the half, but couldn't find the back of the cage, despite earning eight penalty corners during this time. With 14 seconds left on the clock, Sacred Heart earned a penalty corner and had time to get set, before Hendricks fired a rocket past senior Kristen Hodavance (Emmaus, PA) with no time left on the clock.

The Bears dominated the second half, outshooting the Pioneers 14-3 and earning an 8-1 advantage in penalty corners. On their seventh corner of the half, sophomore Jackie Connard (Pipersville, PA) put the Bears on the board with her first career goal at 55:02. After back-to-back shots by Sacco and senior Andrea Posa (Weston, MA) were saved, Connard picked up the lose ball and slipped it behind McIntire for a 3-1 score.

Exactly 4:30 later, at 59:32, the Bears came to within 3-2 when freshman Katie Hyland (Riegelsville, PA) notched her first career goal. On Brown's next corner, McIntire saved back-to-back shots from Sacco. But, Hyland knocked the ball into the net, slipping it between the legs of the Sacred Heart keeper.

Brown continued to press for the equalizer, but the Pioneers gained possession of the ball with under five minutes remaining and scored a fourth goal with just 2:17 left for the 4-2 final.

Brown finished the game with 22 shots to Sacred Heart's 14, including a 14-3 advantage in the second half. Brown also doubled Sacred Heart up on penalty corners, earning 16 to the Pioneers eight. Brown will look to get in the win column this weekend when it hosts a pair of non-league games against Maine on Saturday at noon and against Georgetown on Sunday at noon with the game video on Sunday being streamed live on the internet.